ANALYSIS : Pro Look to Soccer Is Ahead

The election of Alan Rothenberg to the presidency of the U.S. Soccer Federation was as sure as it was swift.

Rothenberg, former president of the Clippers, mounted a surgically efficient campaign that was well-organized and well-backed. His resounding defeat of three-term president Werner Fricker last Sunday signaled the end of soccer’s car-pool and bake-sale mentality. The sport’s agenda is now set.

The campaign was about money and control. It was not about youth soccer nor how to improve coaching or officiating. The struggle was about the 1994 World Cup to be held in the United States, and who will run it and who will profit.

The unseen hand in the election belonged to FIFA, the sport’s international governing body. FIFA’s involvement in the internal politics of a member federation was astonishing, but it also underscored the sad state of the U.S. Soccer Federation.

FIFA’s part in the election has angered many, but Rothenberg and Fricker are attempting to mend fences. Fricker sent Rothenberg a “let’s-work-together” letter Tuesday. Rothenberg is meeting Sunday in New York with Scott LeTellier, director of the 1994 World Cup Organizing Committee. Rothenberg also will meet with Coach Bob Gansler and the national team.

At this point, no job is secure. Rothenberg, who was portrayed as a soccer outsider by his opponents, has sought to allay fears of wholesale firings. Clearly, however, the days of cronyism in the federation are over.

The people behind Rothenberg’s bid were not members of the U.S. Soccer Federation but powerful sponsors, sporting goods manufacturers and FIFA officials. They used their influence to lobby federation members on Rothenberg’s behalf.

Among the power brokers were some familiar faces and some surprises:

Peter Ueberroth/Adidas--Ueberroth, mastermind of the highly successful 1984 L.A. Olympics, is Rothenberg’s friend from their days on the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee. He is also a major stockholder in Adidas-USA and on the board of directors of Coca-Cola, both major soccer sponsors.

Adidas is rumored to be negotiating to bring Franz Beckenbauer, coach of the World Cup champion West German team, to the United States as a consultant or technical director to the national team. No deal is set but one appears likely.

Beckenbauer is already on the Adidas payroll as a spokesman. He spent the weekend as Ueberroth’s guest, playing golf in Laguna Beach.

While the previous USSF adminstration had resisted Beckenbauer’s involvement, Rothenberg says he would be a wonderful addition.

Adidas is the footwear and apparel supplier to the U.S. team. The company knows that if soccer takes off in the United States, the market potential would be huge. It would like to position itself to take advantage of the boom, if it happens. Of course, Ueberroth’s stock in Adidas would also grow in value if the 1994 World Cup is a success. The marketing-minded Rothenberg is just the man to help it happen.

Charles Cale--He is special assistant to the president of the U.S. Olympic Committee. Cale, another alumnnus of the LAOOC, travels the world on amateur sports business and has frequent contact with FIFA officials. Cale was enlisted by FIFA officials to run for the presidency, but he brought up Rothenberg’s name. With Cale as the conduit to the vast LAOOC network and with his international connections, Rothenberg’s campaign got a big boost.

Hank Steinbrecher/Gatorade--Sponsors like to use a soccer metaphor to describe life under the previous administration. “It’s as if we are on the sidelines of a game, and we keep waiting to be called in to play and we never are,” said one.

Steinbrecher has been critical of the USSF for its poor relationship with sponsors and jumped on the Rothenberg bandwagon early.

He became a powerful lobbyist among delegates at the convention because he represents a major sponsor and, ultimately, money to the sport.

SICA--For the first time in its history, the Soccer Industry Council of America endorsed a candidate for USSF president--Rothenberg.

Council members, who manufacture soccer balls, nets, shoes and an array of other products, naturally see that the growth of soccer would translate into sales.

Said Sandy Briggs, SICA executive director: “We have simply lost faith in the USSF as it stands now.”

FIFA--The U.S. Soccer Federation has for the past few years had an increasingly negative reputation, both domestically and internationally. Much of the blame has fallen on Fricker, whose aloof and sometimes arrogant attitude rankled FIFA officials, who could not get him to bend to their will.

Fricker’s performance in Italy during the 1990 World Cup was considered embarrassing by some FIFA officials. These people--including Henry Kissinger, a 1994 World Cup Organizing Committee board member--complained privately about Fricker’s arrogant attitude and wondered if he should continue to run the federation.

In a less subtle move, FIFA press chief Guido Tognoni called candidate Paul Stiehl on the morning of the election and offered him a different job if he would withdraw from the election.

The latest irritants to FIFA were marketing and television agreements signed by the USSF without FIFA approval. Even though the U.S. federation has every right to negotiate without seeking FIFA approval, FIFA believes it has a proprietary interest in all soccer matters. This interest is magnified by the U.S. position as host nation for the 1994 World Cup.

Last December, FIFA rejected a marketing and television deal that the USSF had negotiated with NBC and SportsChannel America, angering the networks.

On June 28, the USSF announced a multiyear, multimillion-dollar marketing contract with Soccer/USA Partners. On July 19, FIFA General Secretary Sepp Blatter sent a letter to Fricker indicating FIFA concern about the contract, in particular the marketing agents.

The hidden agenda: FIFA has a contract with ISL, an international marketing company. That position used to be held by Pasco Nally International until it had a falling-out with FIFA.

FIFA has two concerns: It would like the the USSF to use ISL, but it also suspects that Soccer/USA Partners is in some way connected with the Pasco Nally group.

Beyond the politics is the very real concern that the people who have run soccer in the United States have failed to sell the sport to Americans properly. Further, 1994 is seen as a make-or-break period: If the presence of the World Cup and its attendant excitement can’t create interest in the game here, or if any generated interest is not capitalized upon, then the sport will be doomed to clique status.

MSL--The solidarity of the professional vote clearly delivered the election to Rothenberg. Its alliance with Rothenberg was natural--he had owned the Los Angeles Aztecs in the now-defunct North American Soccer League. But more than that, Rothenberg, a businessman, appeared to understand professional sport. The league’s longstanding dissatisfaction with Fricker was well established, but Fricker did attempt one last bridge-building effort.

The Major Soccer League, formerly the Major Indoor Soccer League, had meetings in Baltimore a week before the USSF meetings. Fricker was there, as was candidate Stiehl. Rothenberg had requested a place on the agenda but was denied it. Fricker came away with a deal in which MSL all-stars would play two outdoor matches against the U.S. national team. This gesture of cooperation, which the pros had been seeking for years, seemed to some to be a last-ditch campaign effort by Fricker to woo the pro vote.

Never before had the MSL teams sent coaches or general managers to the convention, having been content in the past to give their proxy to others. The presence of the league’s most powerful executives was a signal that they took the election seriously.

The USSF system of weighted voting gave the eight MSL teams voting power equivalent to that of the youth and amateur divisions, which represented far more members. At first, the pros were expected to vote as a bloc. Then, the night before the election, the teams were released to vote their conscience.

When the results of the election were announced, the MSL representatives--seated in a row at the front of the ballroom--leaped to their feet and applauded.